Coating machine



May 11, 1937. M F, HOLT Er AL 2,079,614

GOATING MACHINE Filed Jan. 30, 1933 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 May 1l., 1937. M.F. HoLT Er Al.

COATING MACHINE Filed Jan. 50, 1933 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 `ATTORN PatentedMay 1l, 1937 PATENT OFFICE comme MACHINE Maynard F. non; Rye, andSigmund N. Lipowski, New York, N. Y.; said Lipowski assignor to saidHolt Application January 30, 1933, Serial No. 654,188

15 Claims.

This invention relates to a machine for applying a coating of lacquer toarticles, 4in particular golf balls, and the invention contemplates amac hine which delivers articles, which are fed there- 5 to, lacquered,dried and ready for use.

Golf balls are commonly coated with a White lacquer in order to renderthem readily distinguishable from the elements making up thesurroundings in which they are used such as the earth, foliage andgrass. When this white coating becomes chipped, broken and dirty, theballs become indistinguishable from the surroundings and in manyinstances such balls, frequently otherwise in excellent condition.- arelost. In l5 order to prevent the loss of balls because of thiscondition, it is necessary to have them relacquered whenever the whitecoating` becomes dulled and darkened. Heretofore, however', therelacquering of golf balls required the usual large, expensivelacquering plant equipment for that purpose. Because of the equipmentand manual labor involved in properly lacquering balls, lacqueringplaces have not commonly been located conveniently to the golf courses,and the cost of relacquering has been comparatively high.

It is a purpose of this invention to provide a machine for lacqueringgolf balls which is fully automatic. which is of a size convenient to beinstalled at a golf links and the loperation of which may be controlledby a coin. Such a machine should be capable of receiving several ballsat once, sorting the balls, and delivering the balls relacquered anddried in the shortest possible elapsed time, and these desirablefeatures are all 35 embodied in the machine of this invention. Inaccordance with the invention,- there is provided a lacquering machinewhich includes an article dispenser into which several balls may beplaced at once and which includes a mechanism which upon operationdelivers the balls successively into the machine proper. This deliverymechanism is such that only one ball is permitted to enter the machineat a time and the mechanism is so 45 controlled that delivery of `a ballis dependent upon the internal'mechanism being positioned to receive theball. The internal mechanism includes a conveyor on to which the ballsare delivered. The conveyor operates through a com- 50 plete cycle alonga definite path foreach article lacquered. In the cyclic operation ofthe conveyor, it is moved by a. power device successively into operativerelation to a lacquer container into which the ball is dipped, a drierwhich assists the drying of the coating of lacquer on the ball (ci. en-55) and a delivery chute from which the ball is delivered for use.

Among the features of the invention are included the fact that themechanism is compact; the fact that the lacquer container is closed to 5the atmosphere except during the actual dipping operation; the fact thatthe complete cycle of operation is performed in a minimum of elapsedtime; and the elapsed time per ball decreases when a. large number ofballs are lacquered suc- 10 cessively.

The advantages of our invention include the fact that the machine issmall in size and Vdoes not require much space; the fact that theoperation of the machine may be controlled by a coin; and the fact thatthe machine is comparatively inexpensive to manufacture'.

Specifically, a machine for `lacquering golf balls and constituting oneembodiment of this invention includes a, rotatably mounted conveyorwhich operates in a horizontal plane. successively disposed about the'path oi the conveyorv relative to the direction of movement thereof,there is an article dispenser for receiving the golf balls, a lacquerreceptacle, a drier and a delivery mechanism. The ball dispenserincludes a hopper into which the balls are placed and mechanism fordelivering the balls to the conveyor. The delivery of a ball through thedispenser is dependent upon two factors-a manually operative controlelement and a control element operative from the interiorof themachineboth of which must function to deliver a ball into the machine.The manually operative control element partially opcrates the deliverymechanism of the dispenser.

The connection between the manual control and the delivery mechanism forthe partial operation thereof is coin controlled. Complete operation ofthe delivery mechanism of the dispenser to deliver a ball into themachine is controlledI in accordance with the operation of the conveyorso that the conveyor will be properly positioned to receive a ball whenthe ball is delivered through the dispenser.

Following the dispenser, there is a vertically movable lacquercontainer. This 'lacquer container is below the horizontal plane ofoperation of the conveyor. The conveyor-and container are relativelymovable in a vertical direction to dlp' articles carried by the conveyor'in '50` I thev lacquer. The lacquer container consists of a. dippingchamber and a reservoir. The dipping chamber is closed except duringverticall movement of the lacquer container so thatthe lacquer isexposed to the atmosphere only during the actual dipping of an article.The movement of the container in a vertical direction is under thecontrol of the dispenser so that the lacquer container will not be movedand the dipping chamber opened unless the conveyor actually carries anarticle to be dipped.

Next in the order of succession there is `an arcuate blower pipe mountedbelow the plane of operation of the conveyor. The upper surface of thisblower pipe is perforated to form a series of air vents through whichheated compressed air is blown upo the surface of the coated articlecarried by the conveyor. The several factors governing the drying of thelacquer, that is, the moisture content of the air delivered through theair pipe, the temperature of the air and the quantity of air per unit oftime is such that the .coating of lacquer is completely dried while thearticle passes over this air pipe. At the end of the air pipe there isan abutment which'upon relative movement between it and the conveyor,lifts the article from the conveyor and on to the delivery mechanismthrough which the article is delivered to a pocket accessible from theexterior of the machine.

The specific embodiment of the invention shown in the drawings isdescribed in detail below. From that detailed description, a clearerunderstanding of the invention and the several features thereof may beobtained.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan of a machine embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a side sectional elevation of the same Fig. 3 is a rear endelevation of the same, the

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary sectional elevation.

taken on the line 9-.9 of Fig. 8; v

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary section taken on the line Ill- I of Fig. 1;

Fig. 11 is a sectional elevation of the lacquer container taken on theline II--II of Fig. 1; and

Fig.l l24is a wiring diagram of the power cir- Cuit.

The machine illustrated in the drawings is for lacquering golf balls;its operation is controlled by coin actuated means, and it is adapted tobe installed at a golf links or any other suitable place. A casing Iencloses the entire operating mechanism of the machine, a hopper 2 forreceivingthe balls, a manually operative control lever 3 and a balldeliverypocket 4 being the vonly parts which are exterior of the casing.In 1 the casing, a transverse, horizontal partition 5 supports theoperating mechanism of the machinwhich mechanism, in the machineillustrated, essentially includes a conveyor and a dispenser, a lacquertank, a drier and delivery mechanism, all successively disposed aboutthe path of the conveyor. The conveyor consists of a circular disk 6 andseveral unit conveyor elements 1, six in number, mounted on the disk.The circular disk 6 is formed integrally with a bushing 8 which isrotatably mounted upon a vertical shaft 9. The shaft 9 is rotatablymounted in a vertical bearing I formed integral with a bracket Ilsecured to the partition 5. The shaft 9 is held against longitudinalmovement in the bearing I 8 -by two spaced collars I2 and I3 which abutagainst opposite ends of the bearing IIJ. Each of thecollars I2 and I3is secured to the shaft by a transverse pin I2a and I3a. The lower endof the conveyor bushing 8 rests upon and is supported by the edge of thecollar I2. 'On the disk, at the edge thereof and uniformly spaced aboutthe disk, there is formed integral with the disk six bifurcated brackets6a extending perpendicular to the disk. In these brackets, the six unitconveyor elements are mounted. Each conveyor element consists of twolevers pivotally secured together, one lever 1 extending radially oi thedisk 6 and pivotally mounted between its ends in a bifurcated bracket 6aand another lever I3 having one end pivotally secured to the radiallyouter end of the lever 1. 'I'he lever 1 carries a stop member I4 againstwhich the lever I3 abuts to prevent this freely suspended lever fromswinging radially inwardly from a vertical position. On the radiallyinner end of the ,lever 1 there is mounted a cam follower 1a whichengages the cam edge of a cam bushing I5 mounted on the upper end of theshaft 9 extending through the conveyor bushing 8. This cam engaging thecam followers on the end of the levers 1 controls the vertical positionof the levers during the rotation of the conveyor and normally maintainsthe levers 1 substantially horizontal. 'Ihe arm I3 of a conveyor elementis curved to extend at a right angle near its lower or free end. 'Ihisend portion is widened to form a platform I6. The platform I6 of aconveyor element has a series of three spaced prongs I1 extendingtherefrom and upotn which a golf ball is supported by point contac Theconveyor disk 6 is rotated in a step by step movement to move theconveyor elements through a circular path in a horizontal plane. Therotation of the conveyor is accomplished through a ratchet I8 secured tothe conveyor bushing 8 adjacent that end of the bushing which abutsagainst the collar I2. Cooperating with this ratchet there is a pawl I9pivotally mounted on a rod 20. A leaf spring 2| presses the pawl I9against the ratchet. The rod is reciprocated to actuate the ratchetthrough mechanism at the rear of the machine and the rod extends throughthe machine to the rear thereof. The end of the rod 20 is pivotallyconnected to one end of a lever 22, the opposite end of which isrotatably mounted upon a shaft 23 supported by bearing brackets 24 and24a mounted upon the partition Wall 5. Intermediate the ends of thelever 22, there is mounted a cam follower 25 which abuts against a cam26 secured to a cam shaft 21 that extends transversely of the machineand which is rotatably mounted in bearing brackets 28 and 29. On thisshaft there is mounted to rotate therewith a spur gear 30 which mesheswith a pinion 3| secured on a' shaft 32 parallel to the shaft 21 andmounted in short bearing brackets 33 and 34. Secured on to the shaft 32beside the pinion 3l there is a worm gear 35. The worm gear extendsthrough a slot in the partition 5 and meshes with a worm 36 secured on ashaft 31 mounted below the partition 5. The shaft 31 is the shaft of anelectric motor which is used for supplying power and movement to theparts of the machine. Thus, the train of motion for moving the conveyoris from the motor through the shaft 31 to the worm 36v and Worm gear 35to the pinion 3|. From the pinion 3| motion is transmitted to the spurgear 30 and the cam shaft 21. As the cam shaft rotates. thev cam 26 isrotated therewith and acts upon the cam follower on the lever 22. Thelever 22 is moved towards the rear of the machine for each revolution ofthe cam shaft by the action of the cam 26 and through the pawl andratchet moves the conveyor through one-sixth of a revolution. The lever22 is maintained against the cam by a spring 38 connected to the leverand the bearing bracket 28. The conveyor is thus rotated enesixth of arevolution for each revolution of the cam shaft 21.

The balls to be lacquered are delivered to the conveyor through'thehopper 2 mounted on the top of the machine. This hopper forms a part ofa ball dispenser which includes delivery mechanism for delivering theballs to the conveyor elements. The hopper communicates with adishshaped bracket 39 which is secured to and forms cooperatingwiththese ratchet teeth rotate the a closed chamber with the upper wall ofthe casing. In this bracket 39 which is as deep as the diameter of agolf ball, there is rotatably mounted a disk 40 having a series, six innumber, of ball receiving pockets. From the bottom of the brack- A et 39there extends a ball chute 4| through which a ball may pass from theinterior of the bracket on to one of the conveyor elements, thechute 4|extending adjacent the path of the conveyor and positioned so that themouth of the chute is directly over a conveyor element when a conveyorelement is properly positioned with respect thereto.' The openingthrough the upper wall of the casing connecting the hopper to thebracket 39 is angularly displaced through an angle of fromthe openingconnectingthe chute 4| to the interior of the bracket 39 so that thereis never a direct communication between the hopper and the chute 4|.The'pocket-containing disk 40 mounted in the bracket 39 is rotatedcounter-clockwise, as seen in Fig. 1, to bring the pockets successivelyinto communication rst with the hopper and then with the chute 4|.ratchet teeth formed therein and angularly disposed about the diskthrough angles of 60. Pawls disk.

At one side of the disk, slidably mounted in brackets 43 and 43a, thereis a bar 44. The bar 44 carries a pawl- 45 which is pressed against theside of the pocket disk 40 by a leaf spring 46. On the end of the bar44, there is mounted a depending bracket 41 to one end of which there ispivotis secured to the front wall of the casing. The 1 shaft 52 extendsthrough the front of the casing and has mounted on the end thereof thecontrol i lever 3. Immediately behind the front wall of the casing,there is mounted on the shaft 52 a disk 54 which cooperates with a lever55 for controlling theoperation of the shaft 52. The disk 54 extendsbetween a plate 56 mounted on the back of the front wall of the casing.The plate 56 is spaced l from the casing a distance equal to the widthof a l coin, such as a ve cent piece. The disk 56 has a `formed on theend of the lever 55 extends.

'lever l5 is pivotelly mounted between its endl in slot therein intowhich, in the normal or inoperative position of the lever 3, awedge-shaped lug 51 The The disk has a series of n a bifurcated bracket53 and is urged about its pivotal connection by a spring 59 to aposition in which the lug 51 extends into the slot in the disk 54. Theedge of the lug when itextends into the lslot abuts against the edge ofthe slot and pre-v vents the disk and shaft from rotating. When a coinis inserted in the coin-receiving opening in the front wall ofthemachine, it passes down the slot in the disk between the plate 56 andthe wall of the casing and it acts against the inclined surface of thewedge-shaped lug and forces the lug out of the slot in the disk. Thedisk and consequently the shaft may then be rotated by the manuallyoperative lever 3. As the disk is rotated the coin in the slot in thedisk is carried around through an angle of approximately 135 and isdeposited in a coin-receiving chute 60. As the shaft is rotated, theslot in the crank 50 permits the crank to move through an angle ofapproximately 105 without moving the bar 44. During the last 30 ofmovement, however, the end of the slot engages the pin 49 and moves thebar 44. 'Ihe bar 44 will rotate the pocket disk through the pawl 45, andthe movement of the bar is just sufcient to move the pocket disk throughan angle of 30. Ths, by the manually operative lever 3, the pocket whichwas formerly registering, with .the hopper 2 will be moved to a positionbetween the opening in the casing communicating with the hopper 2 andthe opening in the bracket 39 communicating with the chute 4 i.

The pocket disk is moved the remaining 30' to bring the pocket (thusmoved to a position between the hopper and chute 4|) into register withthe chute 4| by a pawl 6| mounted on a bar 62. The bar 62 to one side ofthe pocket disk 40 is diametrically opposite lto the bar 44. Like thebar 44, the bar 62 is slidably mounted in a pair of brackets 63 and 63a.The bar 62 is movable only through a distance sufficient to move thepocket disk through an angie of 30 so that it requires movementof thepocket disk through the limit of movement of the two bars 44 and 62 inorder to move a pocket from a position in communication with the hopper2 to a position in communication with the chute 4|. The rod 52 isactuated by the internal mechanism in relation to the conveyor elementsand it is connected at one end to a lever 64, the other end of which isrotatably mounted on the shaft 32. Intermediate the ends of the lever64, there is mounted on the lever a cam follower 65 which engages a cam66 mounted on the cam shaft 21. The com 66`is so designed and mounted onthe shaft that the lever 62 will be moved the full extent of itsmovement towards the rear of the machine after the conveyor disk 6 hascompleted a onesixth movement. When the conveyor is stationary at theend of each one-sixth movement a conveyor element is directly` beneaththe chute 4|. The cam follower 65 is held against the cam 66 by a spring61 acting 4upon the lever 64. Thus. it will be seen that rotation of thepocket disk through an angie of 60 is dependent upon two powerelements,one a manually operative element, the lever 3, and the other amechanically operative element, the lever 64. The rst of these elementsis coin controlled so that the pocket disk can not be moved` to delivera ball without the insertion of a coin. The latter control ele- 'mentwhich is mechanically controlled assures that when a pocket containing aball registers with the delivery chute 4| a conveyor element will bepositioned beneath the chute to receive the ball passing therethrough.

Following the dispensing mechanism, relative to the direction ofmovement of the conveyor elements, and spaced angularly therefromthrough an angle of 60, there is a lacquer container 89 mounted belowthe horizontal plane of rotation of the conveyor elements. The lacquercontainer is divided by a rectangular partition wall 18 into a dippingchamber and a reservoir. The dipping chamber and reservoir are incommunication below the wall 18 and through perforations in the wall 10.The lacquer container is completely closed except for the opening to thedipping chamber and this chamber is closed by a pair of doors 1| and 12which are pivotally secured to the upper edge of the container by pivots1Ia and 12a extending through hinges formed on the doors and brackets onthe container. Each of the doors has a lever 1lb and 12b extendingtherefrom transversely to, and beyond the edge of the container.Cooperating with the door evers are brackets 18 and 14 which extend overthe levers in the closed position of the doors. 4 The lacquer containeris movably mounted on a piston rod 15 one end of which is threaded intoa lug 16 formed on the bottom of the container. 'I'he piston rod extendsdownwardly through a bushing 11 in the partition wall 5 and into acylinder 18. In the cylinder. the piston rod is secured to a perforatedpiston and the cylinder and perforated piston act in the capacity of adash pot to cushion downward movement of the lacquer container. Withthis piston rod mounting, the lacquer tankcan be moved in a verticaldirection and for this purpose trunnions 19 and 88 extend from each sideof the container. From these trunnions respective levers, 19a and 80a,extend downwardly, and their lower ends are pivotally connected to thearms 88h and 80c of a cradle 8l. The cradle 8| is formed on the end of alever 82 which is pivotally mounted between its ends in a bracket 83secured to and mounted on the partition wall 5. The iree end of thislever 82 is pivotally secured to two vertical levers 84 and 85, one oneach side of the lever 82. 'I'he levers 84 and 85 are secured to acommon pivot extending through and journaled in the lever 8i. The levers84 and 85 are urged against a vertical stop 88, formed on the lever 82,by a spring 81 connected at one end to the lever 85 and at the other endto the lever 82. The lever 85 cooperates with a crank pin 88 mounted ona crank 89. The crank 89 is secured to the cam shaft 21 to rotatetherewith. As the crank rotates, the crank pin abuts against the top ofthe lever 85, de- Pressing the lever 85 and the rear end of the lever82. By virtue of this movement of the lever 82 the lacquer container israised in a vertical direction through the cradle 8|. The position ofthe crank 89 is such, relative to "the conveyor movement cam, that thelacquer container is raised only after the .conveyor has completed aone-sixth revolution at which time a conveyor element is positioneddirectly over the dipping chamber of the lacquer container. It will beobserved that as the lacquer container is moved upwardly, the 'levers1lb and 12b on the doors 1l and 12 engage the brackets 13 and 14 and thedoors are swung about the pivots to an open position as illustrated inFig. l1. When the lacquer container descends to its original positionthe force of gravity acting on the doors cause them to close. Thus thesmallest area of lacquer is exposed to the atmosphere for 'the shortestpossible time, only during the actual dipping operation.

tition wall 5.

Since there are six conveyor elements and the conveyor makes onecomplete revolution for each bail, it is possible that a conveyorelement not containing a bail may be positioned over the lacquercontainer. Six conveyor elements are provided merely to speed theoperation in the event that a number of balls are to be successivelylacquered. In order to prevent the lacquer tank from being open to theatmosphere when there is no ball in the conveyor element above thelacquer container, a control lever 98 is provided which cooperates withthe lever 84 and normally maintains the lever 85 out of the path of thecrank pin 88 to prevent operation of the lacquer container. The lever 90is pivotally mounted between its end in a depending bracket 8i securedimmediately behind the chute 4i. One end of the lever 98 extends througha slot into the chute 4i and the other end of the lever extends intoengagement with the lever 84. A spring 93 normally maintains the lever90 in position to press'the lever 84 rearwardly and thus hold the lever85out of the path of the crank 88. When however a bali passes throughthe chute 4i, it actuates the lever 98 against the spring 93 andreleases the lever 84. When the lever 84 is released, the spring 81draws the lever 85 into the path of the crank pin 88. As the lacquercontainer does not operate until the conveyor makes a one-sixthrevolution after a ball passes through the chute 4I, the container willnot be elevated unless the conveyor element over the container carries aball to be dipped. The lacquer containeris return from its raisedposition to its normal position by the action of the force of gravityacting thereon. The dash pot at the end of the piston rod serves tosoften the downward movement of the lacquer container and thus avoid anysplashing of the lacquer.

Following the lacquer container, and below the plane of operation of theconveyor elements, there is an arcuate pipe 94 supported by the par-This arcuate pipe is closed at both ends and has a seiies ofperforations along its upper surface. 'Ihe pipe is connected through apipe line 95 to a source of warm compressed air (not shown). This warmcompressed air may be supplied from a tank Within the machine, a

compressor being connected to the operating motor of the machine tosupply the compressed air to the tank. However, the source or supply isconnected to the arcuate pipe 94 and a blast of warm air is directedvertically. The radius of curvature of the arcuate pipe is the same asthe distance from the center of the conveyor to the carrying platform ofthe conveyor elements so that as the conveyor rotates the conveyorelements successively pass directly over the arcuate pipe. Thus theairblast from the perforations fn the pipe is directed onto the ballscarried by the conveyor elements. The temperature, volume and watercontent of the air passing over a ball while a conveyor element passesover the pipe are suicient to dry the lacquer.

At the end of the arcuate pipe and slightly spaced therefrom, there ismounteda vertical rod 88 (see Fig. 10) which has a linger 91 extendingdirectly under the path of movement ofthe platforms of theconveyorelements. As a conveyor element reaches this, the last of its sixangular positions in a complete revolution, it is moved downwardly in avertical direction.

This downward movement of the conveyor element is eiected through agroove as shown in leased to the coin receiving chute.

the cam |5 which is rotated through the shaft 9 to bring the groove intoalignment with the cam follower on the end of the lever 1. The shaftv 9is oscillated'through a crank 98 formed on the collar |2, a rod 99pivotally secured at one end to the crank 98, a lever pivotally mountedon the shaft 23 and connected at its free end to the end of the rod 99,a cam follower I0| mounted between the ends of the lever |00, and a cam|02 mounted on the cam shaft 21. As the conveyor element movesdownwardly the finger 91 engages the side of a ball on the conveyorelement and displaces the ball so that the ball drops off of theconveyor element. Below thiselement there is the mouth of a chute |03into which the ball 'is dropped. This chute communicates with thebracket 4 forming the pocket on the exterior of the machine into whichthe lacquered balls, dried and ready for use, are delivered.

In Fig. 12 of the drawings,- the power circuit to the motor of themachine is illustrated. 'I'his i circuit includes two switches, one |04operated by the manual lever 3, and the other a hold-in switchconsisting of a broken conductor ring |05 mounted on the conveyorbushing 0 and a brush to engage in sliding contact with the ring. 'Thetwo switches are connected in parallel. The,

is as follows: In this description of the operation of the machine weshall .assume that the operator of the machine has but a single ballwhich he desires to be lacquered. The ball is inserted in the hopper 2and passes into a pocket in the pocket disk 40. A coin is then insertedin the 'coin slot in the front of the machine. The coin moves downbetween the front wall of the casing and the plate 56 into the slotinthe disk 54. As the coin lis pressed downwardly it forces the wedge lug51 out of the slot in the disk 54. 'I'he operator may then rotate thelever 3. As theI lever 3 is rotated, into the paper as shown in Fig. 3,the shaft 52 is rotated through an angle of 135, the switch |04 isclosed and the coin is re- During the last 30 of rotation of the shaftthe edge of the groove in the crank 50 engages the pin 49, moves the bar44 and rotates the pocket disk 40 through an angle of 30. The pocketwhich was in register with the hopper and into which the ball descendedis thus moved to a position between registry with the hopper and withthe chute 4I.

Operation of the rod 62, as heretofore described,

rotates the pocket disk through the remaining 30 to bring the pocketcontaining the ball into register with the chute 4|. The ball descendsthrough the chute 4| on to the conveyor element and operates the lever90 during its passage through the chute so that the lever 84 is releasedand the lever 05 moves into the path of the crank pin'80.

I'he cam 26 operating on the cam follower 25 .of the lever 22 rotatesthe conveyor through a `one-sixth revolution so that the conveyorelesame time the lever rotates the shaft 9 lso that the groove in thecam I5 becomes aligned with the end of the lever 1 of the 'conveyorelement carrying the ball. The conveyor element thus moves downwardly asthe tank moves upwardly and the ball is dipped into the dipping chamber.As the crank rides oif of the lever 85, the container descends to itsoriginal position; the dash pot arrangement, previously described,prevents a jarring of the lacquer container.

Following the dipping operation, the cam 26 again engages the follower25 of the lever 22 and rotates the conveyor through another one-sixth ofa revolution at which point the ball is over the forward en d of thepipe 94 relative to the direction of movement of the conveyor element.Each succeeding revolution of the shaft 21 rotates the conveyorone-sixth of a revolution until the ball carrying conveyor elementreaches the position adjacent the delivery bracket 96 at which point,when the cam I5 is rotated, a groove in the cam is aligned with the endof the lever 1 and the conveyor element moves downwardly in a verticaldirection. The pin or nger 91 abuts against the ball as the conveyorelement moves downwardly and pushes the ball off the conveyor into theball receiving chute through which itis delivered to the pocket 4.

If more than one ball is to be lacquered the several balls are placed inthe hopper at one time and the operator inserts in succession as many'coins as there are balls, rotating the lever 3 once the elapsed timewill be approximately one andfive-sixths minutes for six balls by virtueof the fact that it will only be necessary for the con,- veyor to makeapproximately one and five-sixths revolutions for the entire six balls.

It will be seen that the machine which we have devised is of aconvenient size and can be readily installed at a golf links or othersuitable place. Its coin control mechanism avoids the necessity ofmanual supervision and thus permits an e'conomical lacquering of usedballs.

It will be obvious that various changes may be made by those skilled inthe art in the details of the embodiment shown. in the drawings andabove particularly described Within the principle and scope of myinvention as expressed in the 1. A machine for coating articles with alacquer comprising a conveyor for carrying the articles to be coated andmeans for moving the conveyor in combination with an article dispenserfor receiving articles to be lacquered and delivering the articles on tothe conveyor, a lacquer containing receptacle, drying means forassisting the drying of lacquer, and delivery means for deliveringarticles from the machine, all operatively related to and disposedsuccessively about the path of the conveyor, means for causing verticalmovements in opposite directions of the conveyor and the lacquerreceptacle respectively to dip an article carried by the conveyor in thelacquer, and control means for said lacquer receptacle'moving means.

- 2. In a machine for coating articles with alacquer the combinationcomprising a conveyor for carrying the article to be lacquered, meansfor moving the conveyor, and a dispensing device including a hopper forreceiving the articles,

' means for delivering the articles in the hopper to the conveyor, andcontrol means for said delivery means including a manually operativecontrol element and a control element actuated in accordance with theposition of the conveyor.

3. In a machine for coating articles with a lacquer the combinationcomprising a conveyor for carrying the article to be lacquered, meansfor moving the conveyor, a lacquer container below the conveyor, andmeans for causing vertical movements in opposite directions of thelacquer containing receptacle and the conveyor respectively to dip anarticle on the conveyor in the lacquer.

4. Automatic mechanism for coating used golf balls comprising incombination: a conveyor adapted to receive and convey through apredeterminedpath a plurality of balls delivered to said conveyor atuniformly separated time intervals said conveyor comprising a verticalshaft carrying a plurality of radially extended arms each of which isadapted to receive and convey a single ball; ball dispensing means todeliver a ball to said conveyor comprising a rotatable horizontal dischaving therein a plurality of circular ball receiving and balldelivering apertures equal in number to the plurality of ball conveyingarms on the conveyor, said disc cooperating with a subjacent platehaving an aperture therein which registers with each disc aperture inturn as the `said disc rotates and simultaneously registers with eacharm of the said conveyor; ball coating means; cam means to actuate theconveyor, the ball delivering means and the ball coating meansrespectively; and means cooperating with the ball delivering means andball coating mechanism whereby the latter becomes operative to coat theball only upon delivery of a ball by the ball dispensing means to theconveyor.

5. Automatic mechanism for coating golf balls comprising in combination;a conveyor adapted to advance a ball by intermittent motion to and fromsuccessive stations including a ball receiving and dispensing stationand a ball coating station said conveyor comprising a plurality ofradial arms adapted to rotate in a horizontal plane; ball dispensingmeans at the ball dispensing station comprising a horizontally rotatabledisc carrying a plurality of peripheral apertures cooperating with asubjacent plate to form ball pockets, said plate having an apertureadapted to permit a ball to fall therethrough; ball coating means at theball coating station; cam means on a common cam shaft to operate theconveyor, the ball dispensing means and the ball coating means which cammeans during operation advances a ball` to and from its successivestations and simultaneously brings into registry a conveyor arm, apocket in the rotatable disc and the said aperture in the subjacentplate thereby permitting the delivery of a ball from the dispenser tothe conveyor; and means connected with the dispenser and ball coatingmechanism respectively whereby the latter becomes operative to coat aball only upon delivery of a ball from the dispenser to the conveyor.

6. In a machine for coating the entire surface of articles with alacquer, the combination comprising a conveyor for supporting andcarrying an articleincluding an arm rotatable about a vertical axis andpoint supports carried, thereby f9.1' 91h gaging the article, means fordelivering an article on to the point supports carried by the arm, alacquer container angularly disposed about the center of rotation of theconveyor arm with respect to said delivery means, means for rotating theconveyor arm from a position to receive an article from the deliverymeans to a vertical plane passing through the lacquer container and theaxis of rotation of the conveyor arm, and means for effecting relativevertical movement of the conveyor arm and lacquer container to immersethe article carried thereby in the lacquer and remove the article fromthe lacquer.

7. In a machine for coating the entire surface of articles with alacquer, the combination comprising a conveyor for supporting andcarrying an article including an arm rotatable about a vertical axis andpoint supports carried thereby for engaging the article, means fordelivering an article on to the point supports carried by the conveyorarm, a lacquer container angularly spaced about the center of rotationof the conveyor arm with respect to said delivery means, means forrotating the conveyor arm from a position to receive an article from thedelivery means to a vertical plane passing through the lacquer containerand the axis of rotation of the conveyor arm, means for effectingrelative vertical movef ment of the conveyor arm and lacquer containerto immerse the article carried thereby in the lacquer and remove thearticle from the lacquer, and means angularly spaced from the lacquercontainer for removing the article from the conveyor arm.

8. In a machine for coating the entire surface of articles with alacquer, the combination comprising aconveyor for supporting andcarrying an article including an arm rotatable about a vertical axis andpoint supports carried thereby for engaging the article, means forrotating the arm, delivery means for delivering an article on to thepoint supports of the conveyor arm, a lacquer container, drying meansand an abutment all successively spaced angularly about the center ofrotation of the conveyor arm, means for eiecting relative verticalmovement of the conveyor arm and lacquer container to immerse thearticle in the lacquer, and means to effect relative vertical movementof the abutment and conveyor arm to remove the article from the conveyorarm.

9. In a machine for coating an article with a lacquer, the combinationcomprising means for coating an article with a lacquer and means fordelivering articles to the lacquering means including a rotatablymounted disk having an opening therethrough adapted to receive anarticle to be lacquered, a plate on each side of said disk, one of saidplates having an article receiving opening therethrough and the otherhaving an article delivering opening therethrough angularly spaced aboutthe disk with respect to the receiving opening in the other plate, andoperating means for the disk comprising a pair of elements, meansforactuating one of the elements to rotate the disk from a point inwhich the opening therethrough registers with an opening through one ofthe plates to a position in which the opening therethrough is midwaybetween the openings through the plates, and means for actuating theother element to move the disk to a position in which the openingtherethrough registers with the opening through the other plate.

10. In a machine for coating an article with a lacquer, the combinationcomprising means for coating an article with a lacquer and means fordelivering articles to the lacquering means including a rotatablymounted disk having an opening therethrough adapted to receive vanarticle to be lacquered, a plate on each side of said disk, one of saidplates having an article receiving opening therethrough and the otherhaving an article delivering opening therethrough angularly spaced aboutthe disk with respect to the receiving opening in the other plate, andoperating means for the disk comprising a pair of elements, means foractuating one of the elements to rotate the disk from a point in whichthe opening therethrough registerswith an opening through one of theplates to a position in which the opening therethrough is midway betweenthe openings through the plates, means for actuating the other elementto move the disk to a position in which the opening therethroughregisters with the opening through the other plate, and means forcoordinating the action of said last mentioned ele- .ment with theoperation of the lacquering means.

11. In a machine for coating an article with a lacquer, the combinationcomprising means for coating an article with a lacquer and means fordelivering articles to the lacquering means including a rotatablymounted disk having an opening therethrough adapted to receive anarticle to be lacquered, a plate on each side of said disk, one of saidplates having an article receiving opening therethrough and the otherhaving an article delivering Aopening therethrough angularly spaced'about the disk with respect to the receiving opening in the other disk,and operating means for the disk comprising a pair of elements, manuallyoperative means for actuating one of the elements to rotate the diskfrom a point in which the opening therethrough registers with an openingthrough one of the plates to a position in which the openingtherethrough is midway between the openings through the plates, meansfor actuating the other element to move the disk to a position in whichthe opening therethrough registers with the opening through the otherplate, and means for coordinating the action of said last mentionedelement with the opdelivery means including a pair of control elementseach operative to effect partial operation of the delivery means,manually operative means for actuating one of said control elements, andmeans for actuating the other of said control elements in accordancewith the operation ofthe conveyor.

13. In a machine for coating golf balls by a dipping operation, articlecoating mechanism including a lacquer container, a conveyor, and balldelivering mechanism, said conveyor being located subjacent and inspaced relation to the ball delivering mechanism, said ball deliveringmechanism including means for delivering the ball to the conveyor by adownward movement of the ball, said conveyor including means forreceiving the ball from the ball delivering mechanism at a pre4determined position in respect to the conveyor and for maintaining theball in that position during' the coating operation, and means foreiecting substantially reciprocating movement of the conveyor and theball ina vertical plane containedin the lacquer container to dip theball on the conveyor into the lacquer in the container.

1,4. In a machine for coating golf balls by a dip- 'pin'goperatiomarticle coating mechanism including a lacquer container, a conveyor, andball delivering mechanism, said conveyor including point support meansi'or receiving the ball from the ball delivering mechanism at apredetermined position in respect to the conveyor and for maintainingthe ball in that position during the coating operation, and means foreiecting substantially reciprocating movement of the conveyor and theball ina vertical plane contained in the lacquer container to dip theball on the conveyor into the lacquer in the container.

15. In a machine for coating articles by a dipping operation, articlecoating mechanism including a lacquer container, article deliveringmechanism` and a conveyor, said conveyor being located in spacedrelation to thearticle delivering mechanism, said article deliveringmechanism including means for delivering the article to the conveyor bya downward movement of the article, said con've'yor'inc'luding means forreceiving the article from thearticle delivering mechanism at apredetermined position in respect to the conveyor and for maintainingthe article in that position during the coating operation, and means foreiecting reciprocating movement of the conveyor I and the article in a.vertical plane contained in the lacquer container to dip the article onthe conveyor into the lacquer in the container.

MAYNARD F. HOLT.

SIGMUND N. LJIOWSKI.

